Nov. 28, 2006
Box Score
KINGSTON, R.I. -- Will Daniels had 18 points, leading a balanced offensive attack, as the Rams defeated Iona, 85-60, at the Ryan Center. Daniels was 5-for-9 from the floor, including 1-of-3 from the perimeter, and was 7-of-10 from the free throw line.
URI (4-3) had its best shooting night of the season, connecting on better than 50% of its shots from the field (32-63). But along with the solid work on the offensive side of the ball, head coach Jim Baron pleased with another stat: turnovers.
"I was happiest with our 12 turnovers. I'll take that number every night out." Baron remarked. "We shot well from the floor, did a good job in the second half on the glass, and kept attacking the bucket."
The game started off with both teams trading baskets. Iona (0-4) took its first lead after a Mike Harris three made it 14-13, with 11:26 to play in the first half. Justin Marshall gave the Gaels their largest - and last - lead at 20-18 with 8:36 left. But then the Rams offense kicked into high gear, outscoring Iona 21-4 to close out the first frame with a 39-24 lead at the break.
Rhody shot 60.9% in the first 20 minutes of play, connecting on 14-of-23 shots. The Runnin' Rams also had 16 fast-break points and 23 second-chance tallies.
"We were playing hard, like we practice and prepare. It's 'go, go, go' out there for us and it was clicking tonight." Lucky said. The junior guard also had three rebounds and two assists in 26 minutes of action.
Another Marshall bucket put Iona within 11 points, at 46-35 with 17:06 remaining, but another Ram run - this time a 9-0 push - put Rhody up by 20 (57-37) with just under 13 minutes. Rhody would lead by as many as 26 in the second half.
"Everybody stepped up tonight, especially our bench." Kahiem Seawright said. "They provided us with a spark and did a good job getting our energy level up. We started flat, but they and crowd really helped us pick it up." Seawright had seven points and eight rebounds in 27 minutes of action.
Parfait Bitee scored 13 points, while Jon Lucky had 12 and Jimmy Baron 11. Bitee connected on 3-of-5 from beyond the arc. As a team, Rhode Island was 7-of-17 from the perimeter.
The Rams' next game is their annual matchup against in-state rival Providence on Saturday at the Dunkin Donuts Center.
"Providence is playing very well right now and is a very good basketball team." said Coach Baron. "They get it done from their frontcourt and the backcourt is playing tremendous. They have good combinations, they're good inside and out. As always, this game is a tough, tough battle."
"Now that tonight is over, we know we're up against a local rival and a good team." Seawright said. "We need to really get focused on our play and continue to do what we've been doing."
Notes: Will Daniels extended his double-digit scoring streak this season to seven...Joe Mbang narrowly missed his first double-double. He had nine points and nine rebounds. Included in those nine points were two thunderous two-handed dunks...URI again outrebounded its opponent. The Rams are are outrebounding their opponents by an average of 12.3 boards per outing...In his last four games, freshman Lamonte Ulmer is averaging 7.3 rebounds per game. He had seven board tonight...URI's 12 turnovers are a season-low...The 18 assists tie a season-high (also vs. Stonehill).
